Hamas has dropped its demand for a complete end to the war and a full withdrawal of the IDF from the Gaza Strip, a Hamas source told The Washington Post on Tuesday.

According to the source, the revised proposal currently being discussed includes a 60-day truce and the exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. However. while Hamas appears to have softened its stance on broader demands, it is doubling down on the condition that residents be allowed to return to northern Gaza.

The development follows comments made by Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz on Monday during a meeting of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, in which he said that Israel is “closer than ever” to reaching a prisoner swap and ceasefire agreement with Hamas.

Katz noted that any agreement would be implemented in stages and emphasized Israel’s flexibility, particularly regarding the Philadelphi Corridor and Netzarim Corridor. “These will not be an obstacle to implementing a deal,” he said.

Sources familiar with the negotiations told the Knesset Channel this week that Hamas is facing logistical challenges, particularly in reaching all the hostages intended for release as part of the deal’s humanitarian framework.

Another significant sticking point, according to reports, is Hamas’s insistence on including fewer hostages in the humanitarian phase of the agreement than Israel has demanded. This discrepancy has added complexity to the talks and slowed progress toward finalizing a deal.

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